International Fare Originates From Worldwide Packaging Research at GIO Global Intelligence, Chicago. GIO Conducts Fieldwork in Product Categories in 27 Countries to Gain Insights on how Packaging Appeals to Local Consumers.

Global market and packaging research. At GIO Intelligence, contact Joe Dollens at 312.280.1669 or jdollens@gio.com, or visit www.gio.com

This is one of the most elegant freeze-dried coffee containers on the market today.  The dark browns and regal golds create the perfect background to highlight the white Carte Noire tag. The contrast draws attention to what might otherwise be a smallish and rather undistinguished moniker.  This refined look reinforces the Carte Noire brand, widely recognized as “the” freeze-dried coffee. The package’s tapered base highlights the rich robust coffee within. A curved, clear plastic window provides a unique view of the product. The squared top hides within the black shrink-wrapped cover, creating a bit of a puzzle for the consumer—how does this package open?  Answer: a screw off top that lies underneath.

The @ttract! molded fiber egg package has brought the concept of innovation to egg packaging. Its futuristic six-pack design is available in 21 commercial colors that anticipate current trends. The package can also carry text and images on all sides, resulting in a full 360 degrees of billboard space. An interactive web site (www.huhtamaki-attract.com) has been established to allow designers and marketers to custom design their own egg cartons. The package’s design is the result of research into consumer perceptions and trends as well as the needs of retailers and marketers.

A new weedkiller product is packaged in a swan-neck spray bottle specially designed to spray downwards for easier, more precise weeding. Round-up Express, produced by Monsanto, is a powerful weedkiller available in France and the UK. The bottle, manufactured by RPC Packaging Gent (www.rpc-group.com), has received a prestigious consumer innovation award in France and was also recognized in Monsanto’s in-house magazine, T&T. The bottle’s flat front panel provides a large billboard for graphics and copy. The 1.5 litre HDPE bottle, blow molded at RPC Gent, was designed and developed by Monsanto’s Lawn & Garden team in Antwerp in collaboration with RPC Gent’s R&D team.

Achieving shelf impact and delivering ease of use were the goals behind new packaging for SICO’s King tire repair and inflator. The exterior of the can features a “tire tread” graphic that encircles the entire top and base of the container, clearly communicating the purpose of the product to consumers. In addition, an image of a tire pressure gauge is embossed onto the front of the package, creating a striking asymmetrical shape. The container itself is contoured in a comfortable, easy-to-grip shape that facilitates product dispensing. The high-impact package uses a proprietary blowforming process from Crown (www.crowncork.com) that’s said to maintain a better surface finish and glossiness for the final package.

The trend toward relaunching retro brands once considered cool continues with the reintroduction of Solera Light beer in Venezuela. Originally launched in the late 1950s in traditional green and brown bottles, the once popular beer brand has been repurposed and its packaging revamped to appeal to today’s consumer. With the help of research conducted by bottle supplier O-I Venezuela (www.o-i.com), which identified the potential market value associated with colored glass containers, brand owner Polar decided to capitalize on consumer interest in a new cobalt-blue glass bottle. Solera Light beer was reintroduced in a 250-ml longneck cobalt-blue glass bottle and has earned widespread consumer acceptance to the tune of 105 million bottles shipped in the first year of production.